Weddingbee boards

I live in NYC and posted a two-part review of all the vendors I used.  I didn't, however, include those that dealt with Jewish matters (ie. benchers, kippot), opting instead to put them here.  I also included my ceremony and catering info, as I thought that would be helpful as well.

If you'd like any additional info, feel free to message me.  Otherwise, I hope my reviews will help any brides that may be considering these vendors...

Ketubah:

MPArtworks.com - What can I say - I love, love my ketubah and have already given recommendations to anyone needing one to go to MPArtworks.  Proofs and corrections were done and sent right away; any questions I had were promptly answered.  The final product was exactly what I wanted and looked exactly as shown online.  And sales happen very frequently, which will save you even more than you'll already save compared to most other ketubah sites.  It also has various sales, to I happened to get my ketubah at a discount, and ordered it with a pen and protective envelope.  After order was finalized, we got it within a week. 

Kiddush cup/Hubby's tallit:

JewishBazaar.com - I prefer doing as much of my shopping online as possible, because I just don't have the time to go to stores with my busy schedule.  Of all the sites I checked out, Jewish Bazaar had good items at great prices and the pictures were very true to reality.  DH's tallit was exactly what I wanted and we loved out kiddush cup.  The price was right and my order shipped out super fast.

(I ordered the same from another place and was totally disappointed; I even returned the cup and they cannot find it and I'm having a hard time finding my confirmation amongst all the wedding mess, so the store essentially got both my money and cup; will never do business with that place again).

Kippot:

MazelTops.com - It was between Mazel Tops and another competitor - the price difference being so slim.  In the end I chose Mazel Tops because of the customer service and niceness of Chaykah.  My emails were answered promptly; I was provided proofs and tripled confirmed what the interior of the kippot would read; and shipping was super fast.  All this only four weeks before my wedding!  The kippot looked great and we were so very pleased.  I highly recommend and would order from MT again.

Benchers:

Yarmulkes.com (Brooklyn) – Jacob worked on and completed our benchers in about 3 ½ weeks.  We did all our communication via email and telephone and he sent me a final proof before printing.  We even got a discount by paying in cash.  I felt the site offered a lot of varieties; we chose the simple Ashkenazic Hebrew/English one that was budget friendly and made a nice favor for those of our guests who were interested.  

Ceremony:

FlatbushJewishCenter.org (Brooklyn) – My husband and I are active members here.  We originally were looking to have our wedding somewhere else, since our wedding was a bit too big to have the reception on-site.  But after being so disappointed with many places we saw, we just decided that we’d have the ceremony here and then just look to have the reception elsewhere.

We got nothing but complements about our synagogue, which made us proud.  Our rabbi is the synagogue’s rabbi and we had a good friend, also a member, serve as cantor the day of.  Anyone can use the facilities for a small fee if you aren’t a member; and if your wedding is small enough, you can certainly have a tish and b’deken on site, and then also have the reception (or do like us and go to another site).  One slight drawback is that all parking is street, but on a Sunday it’s generally not so bad and everyone was able to find a spot okay.

FOOD

Catering:

MainEventCaterers.com (NJ/NYC) – Hubby and I keep kosher and while we can be somewhat flexible when we go out (eating only veggies), this wasn't going to do for our wedding.  I contacted quite a few caterers and narrowed it down to a handful.  After some positive reviews by brides I spoke to, I decided to go with Main Event.

Although we didn't get to do a tasting, we weren’t disappointed - the food on the wedding day was spectacular.  Many of our guests were non-Jews and aside from deli food, not familiar enough with how fancy kosher food can get.  Our event didn't look much different than any other.  The portions were hearty; the flavors just burst into your mouth.  We received nothing but compliments on the food, the staff, and the set up (our venue only provided some pieces, so Main Event provided the linens and tables; the cutlery, plates, and glasses was included in the catering price).  I highly recommend and would use Main Event again for a party or other catered affair.

Wedding Cake:

Chatilly.com (Brooklyn) - World of Chantilly isn't your run-of-the-mill bakery - in fact, it's not a bakery at all but a warehouse where the output of cakes each year is phenomenal.  Of course, I didn't know that ahead of time so I was disappointed not to have those cake tasting moments.  But the final product was great - delicious, fluffy pareve cake (it's a kosher out fit).  My only complaint is that although it looked okay and folks didn't know any better, having gone over the ribbon and outline of the cake layers, it wasn't what I wanted so I wasn't happy. 

In all, good value for the cost and I'd definitely order on a large scale from them again.

Alcohol:

TopsLiquor.com – Just did a Google search to find kosher wines.  I found a few in the area, but the drive just didn’t seem worth it.  I stumbled onto Tops Liquor, conveniently located in Brooklyn and decided to contact.  I supplied my of the wines and spirits I needed for the wedding and asked for a rough estimate.  Jeff Cohen promptly responded and was kind enough to price out each item, and gave me a great price for my bulk purchase.  They were out of the champagne but ordered it and it came within a few days.  They also recommended a beer distributor just a few blocks away (Thrifty Liquors), so in one stop we were able to buy all our alcohol for the wedding.

They have a great selection of kosher wines and also liquors that you can’t get at regular stores, if you keep kosher (ie. amaretto, etc.).  I will go back for all my future kosher liquor needs.

Thanks - except for the current contest being done, I'm not sure how to post reviews to the main site.  I've already posted them for each vendor so if you look up the vendor either through this site or via weddingwire.com, the same reviews appear.

We ordered 8 dozen and wound up having way too many left.  I thought most people would take one, but not even many of his family members took and some of my friends, so we have a ton of left overs.  We donated almost a dozen to the shul's stack and put the rest away in storage. 

Depending on your party, in doing my count, I'd say one per couple and then add a few extra for good measure.  If I had to do over again, that's what I'd do and if there weren't enough - oh well.  We had the same issues with our benchers - but these things happen, what can you do...